“Children have an unending capacity for love. We should not spoil them by teaching them to hate someone on the basis of language, culture, caste or religion,’’ writer Siddalinga Pattanashetty said in Belagavi on Sunday.
“Adults keep playing with the lives of children by forcing them to think like them. It is dangerous. We should not implant seeds of enmity in the minds of children. They are capable of immense, unconditional love and we should let them be,’’ Dr. Pattanashetty said during a meeting with readers at Sapna Book House. The meeting was organised by Rostrum Diaries, under the Harate Katte monthly programme of dialogue with writers.
“If you love your own language, it does not mean that you should hate the language spoken by others. There is no point in hating any language. A new language opens up your mind in unprecedented ways. We should encourage our children to learn as many languages as possible. It helps expand their vision and strengthen their personality,’’ he said.
‘Adults keep playing with the lives of children by forcing them to think like them which is dangerous. We should not implant seeds of enmity in the minds of children as they are capable of immense, unconditional love and we should let them be.’
“I feel that the three-language formula is fit and proper for a diverse country like India. Children’s brains are so sharp and absorptive that they are capable of learning five languages and not just three. We should realise that. I was a student of a Government Kannada-medium school. But I ended up as a professor of Hindi with a doctorate in Hindi literature and an accomplished writer in Kannada who learnt multiple languages, including German, Sanskrit, Prakrit, Pali and Urdu,’’ he said.
He pointed out that the three-language formula was not properly implemented in North Indian States as they were focussing only on Hindi. They are losing out on this front. They should make an attempt to learn at least one other Indian language and one foreign language, if possible, he said.
He said that he constantly tries hard to retain the curiosity that he has had as a child, as eternal curiosity is the spring of creativity for a writer. “My childhood memories of poverty and a fatherless house continue to haunt me. I have published the first of my autobiographical trilogy, Girijavvana Maga, and plan to publish the other two parts in the coming years. I have almost completed the second part,’’ he said.
He recalled his teachers in primary and secondary school who taught him language, grammar and introduced him to literature. He said that he chose to study Hindi after he failed in Hindi in the seventh standard. Dr. Pattanashetty, who is considered one of the prominent Hindi writers of modern times, recalled his association with veteran writers Harivanshrai Bachchan and Mohan Rakesh whose works he translated.
The writer’s wife, Hema Pattanashetty, who is a poet and publisher in her own right, said that she had fought all types of discrimination.
“I was the only girl in a large, joint family. I had a tomboy image since childhood and was teased for it. I began writing about this since high school. I was an activist too and complained to my school principal seeking permission for girls to play hockey. We have to realise that writings by a feminist is her protest and agitation. I have always written against discrimination and the hierarchical system,’’ she said.
She advised young poets to revise their work multiple times, before sending it for publication.
Nadeem Sanadi, who felicitated the dialogue, said that Dr. Pattanashetty had the unique distinction of a poet from South India who wrote the Nigam Geet, Life Insurance Corporation’s anthem.
Abhishek Bendigeri of Rostrum Diaries, Raghu V., Sapna Book House branch head, and others were present.
